The discussion covers a 2021 publication by the Chirik group (Nature Chemistry, 2021, DOI: 10.1038/s41557-020-00614-w) which details the discovery of a new way to polymerize butadiene through iron-catalyzed [2+2] cycloadd
I have never enjoyed teaching nomenclature, but it is certainly important for students to know what is meant when they see a name out there in the wild. I use Gary's excellent in-class activity (linked below) and then follow up with these slides to cement the knowledge in the last 10-20 minutes of class. The first content slide is a list of nomenclature rules from IUPAC but I normally fill in a list of class-generated rules on the title slide before moving to the truth... our in-class rules are often quite close to the published rules.
This is the link to the 15th SLiThEr (Supporting Learning with Interactive Teaching: a Hosted, Engaging Roundtable), presented by Drs. Abby O'Connor and Benny Chan from the The College of New Jersey (TCNJ). The SLiThEr was recorded and posted on YouTube (see the web resources link).
This particular roundtable was presented by two faculty at TCNJ about how they have been working on improving inclusivity in inorganic chemistry and beyond at TCNJ!
This is a classic experiment that has been revised and updated numerous times over the years. The experiment can be found in Girolami, Rauchfuss and Angelici, 3rd edition, but that edition removed some purification steps that were present in the earlier edition which has plagued generations of my students with poor resolution of the enantiomers. Marion Cass published a J. Chem. Educ. article in 2015 that included a pH determination and added back in the recrystallization step. This allowed my students to achieve higher yields and greater resolution in Spring 2020.
This is the link to the 14th SLiThEr (Supporting Learning with Interactive Teaching: a Hosted, Engaging Roundtable), presented by Sydney Towell and Reilly Gwinn and Hosted by Chip Nataro. The SLiThEr was recorded and posted on YouTube (see the web resources link).
This particular roundtable was presented by two senior undergraduate on their experiences during the pandemic. In addition to talking about the challenges or remote learning and research, they also discuss applying to graduate school and the apprehension they face making a decision without visiting the schools.
For our virtual offering of inorganic chemistry laboratory at Harvey Mudd College in Spring 2021, I made some videos and collected some high quality data (IR, 1H NMR, MS, UV-Vis, mp, and X-ray diffraction) that I will make available for my students. The videos show the synthesis of Co and Mn acacs, the difference between as-prepared and recrystallized compounds, making solutions for UV-Vis and Evans method NMR, and making Evans method capillary tubes. The procedures for the synthesis of these compounds is found in Woolins (either the first or second editions).
A little more than 5 slides.... but hey batteries are important! Often there are not good slides available to introduce batteries, broadly, so I went a made them! These slides were also created to accompany the LO on redox flow batteries. This set of slides reviews alkaline batteries introduced in general chemistry and transitions to more modern approaches to batteries including lithium ion batteries and redox flow batteries. This work highlights the 2019 Nobel Prize work for lithium ion batteries.
The activity allows students to present the results and analysis of a lab experiment in the form a research brief. Students have the option to create a written brief or record themselves giving the brief as a PowerPoint presentation.
This multi-part LO is a hybrid consisting of an in-class activity and a literature discussion. It utilizes the article "How to Review a Paper" by Igor V.
This paper in Chemical Science written by Ellen Matson and co-workers describes a structure function approach to improving the properties of non-aqueous redox flow batteries based upon polyoxovanadate-alkoxides (POV-alkoxides). Given the importance of battery technology on society and sustainable chemistry, this article allows students to engage with a paper that could have broad implications in society.